Lagotto Romagnolo

[Troy]

The Lagotto Romagnolo

ANKC Standard

(from http://www.ankc.org.au/home/breeds_details.asp?bid=94 )

Group: Group 3 (Gundogs)

General Appearance: Small to medium sized dog, well proportioned, powerfully built, of a rustic [hardy] appearance, with a dense, curly coat of woolly texture.

Important proportions, The length of the head is 40% of the height at the withers. The dog is nearly as high as it is long (square).

The length of the skull should be slightly more than 50% of the total length of the head.

The length of the muzzle is 20% less than that of the skull (i.e. 44%:56%)

The depth of the chest is less than 50% (about 44%) of the height at the withers.

Characteristics: [Not specified. ]

Utilisation, Truffle Dog.

Temperament: A natural gift for searching and its very good nose has made the breed very efficient in truffle searching. The former hunting instinct has been eliminated, hence his work is not distracted by the scent of game. The Lagotto is tractable, undemanding, keen, affectionate, very attached to his owner and easy to train. He is a very good companion and also an excellent watch dog.

Head And Skull: Viewed from above, trapezoidal in shape [a four sided shape with no two sides parallel] and moderately broad; the upper longitudinal axes [planes] of the skull and of the muzzle diverge slightly [slightly down-faced].

Cranial region:

Skull, The skull is wide at the level of the zygomatic arches [cheek bones] and is as long as it is wide. Viewed from the side, from occiput to stop, the skull should be longer than the muzzle. It is slightly convex [arched] and tends to flatten out at the back skull. The rounded bones of the forehead are well developed, well defined eyebrows, pronounced forehead furrow, occipital crest short and not very developed, slight depressions above the eye sockets.

Stop, Not too pronounced.

Facial region:

Nose - large, with wide open and mobile nostrils. Median groove strongly pronounced. Viewed in profile, the nose continues on the same level as the muzzle and protrudes very slightly from the front edge of the lips. The colour ranges from light to dark brown, depending on the colour of the coat.

Muzzle , Fairly broad, a little shorter than the skull (ratio - skull 56%, muzzle 44%), the depth being only slightly less than the length. It is slightly wedge shaped, with a moderately flat front face. The bridge of the nose is straight.

Lips , The lips are not too thick; they are rather tight, so that the lower profile of the muzzle is determined by the lower jawbone. They are covered with a long and rather bristly moustache. Viewed from the front, the lips form a wide semi-circle. The colour of the edges ranges from light to dark brown.

Cheeks , Flat

Eyes: Fairly large, rounded, filling the socket, set fairly well apart. The colour of the iris ranges from ochre to hazel and dark brown, depending on the colour of the coat. Close fitting eyelids; the colour of the eye-rims ranges from light to dark brown. Eyelashes very well developed. Look is alert, expression keen and lively

Ears: Medium sized in proportion to the head, triangular with rounded tips; their base is rather wide; they are set just above the zygomatic arches. Hanging at rest or slightly raised when the dog is attentive. If pulled towards the nose they should reach the muzzle at 1/4 of its length. On the ears, the hair tends to show looser curls, but remains very wavy. No short hair on the ears. The inner part of the ear-flap is also covered with hair.

Mouth: Jaw strong with almost straight branches and a relatively large lower jaw. Complete scissor or pincer bite with white and well developed teeth. Slightly undershot mouth acceptable.

Neck: Strong, muscular, lean with oval section; well set off from the nape and absolutely free from dewlap. Topline slightly arched. In males, the circumference of the neck can be twice that of its length. The length of the neck is a little less than the total length of the head.

Forequarters: General , Vertical, seen from the front and in profile.

Shoulders , Shoulder blades long (30% of the height at the withers), well laid back (52-55 degrees), muscular, strong and closely attached to the chest, but moving freely. The angle between the shoulder blade and the upper arm ranges from 110 to 115 degrees.

Upper Arm, Muscular, of fine bone structure, as long as the shoulder blade; its angle from the horizontal ranges from 58 , 60 degrees.

Elbows, Well attached to the chest wall, but not too tightly; covered with fine skin; parallel to the median sagittal [central] plane of the body as are the upper arms. The point of the elbow is located on a vertical line lowered from the back end of the scapula to the ground.

Forearm , Perfectly vertical, long (36% of the height at the withers), with compact, strong bone of oval cross section.

Wrist (carpus) , Viewed from the front, in a vertical line with the forearm; fine, robust and mobile; pisiform bone markedly protruding.

Pastern , Rather less thick and of finer bone compared with the forearm; mobile; seen in profile, it forms an angle of 75 to 80 degrees with the ground.

Body: Compact and strong; almost as long as the height at the withers.

Top line , Straight from the withers to the croup.

Withers , They rise above the level of the croup; the highest points of the shoulder blades are not too close, but quite high set and well laid back.

Back , Straight, very muscular.

Loin , Short coupled, very strong, in profile slightly arched. Width is equal to or exceeds the length.

Croup , Long, wide, muscular, slightly sloping; (slope of the hip bone ranges from 25 to 30 degrees).

Chest , Well developed, reaching down to the elbows. Although fairly narrow in front, from the sixth rib the chest widens backwards.

Underline and Belly , Long sternal section in form of a straight line; the following tuck-up is only slight.

Hindquarters: General , Hindquarters upright, powerful, well proportioned to the size of the dog.

Upper Thigh , Long (35% of the height at withers), with clearly separated and visible muscles. The femur forms a sharp angle of 80 degrees from the horizontal. The angle between the hip bone and the femur ranges from 105 to 110 degrees. The thigh is parallel to the median plane of the body.

Stifle , The angle of the stifle joint ranges from 130 to 150 degrees.

Lower Thigh , Slightly longer than the upper thigh (36% of the height at the withers), well boned and muscled, with marked muscular groove. Its angle on the horizontal ranges from 50 to 55 degrees.

Hock-joint , Wide, thick, lean, with clearly defined bone; parallel to the median plane of the body; the angle between the lower thigh bone and the bones forming the hock is about 140 degrees.

Hock(Metatarsus) , Thin, cylindrical, perpendicular to the ground.

Feet: Forefeet , Slightly rounded, compact, with arched and tight toes. Nails strong and curved. Pads well pigmented. Webs between the toes very well developed.

Hind feet , Slightly more oval-shaped than the forefeet and toes slightly less arched.

Tail: Set on neither too high nor too low; tapering towards the end. When extended, it should barely reach the hocks. At rest, carried scimitar-like; when attentive, decidedly raised. When working or excited, can be carried over the back, but never curled.

Gait/Movement: Walk is regular, trot energetic and brisk, will gallop for short periods.

Coat: Of woolly texture, somewhat rough in surface, forming tightly curled, ring-shaped curls with the undercoat shining through. Curls must be evenly distributed all over the body, except on the head, where the curls are less tight, forming well-furnished eyebrows, whiskers and beard. Even the cheeks are covered with dense hair. The topcoat and especially the undercoat are waterproof. If not clipped, the hair tends to become felted; therefore a complete clipping must be performed at least once a year. Felted topcoat and undercoat must be removed periodically.

Colour: Off-white solid colour, white with brown or orange patches, brown roan, brown solid colour (indifferent shades), or orange solid colour. A brown to dark brown mask acceptable.

Sizes: Height at withers:

Dogs from 43-48 cms [17-19 ins] (Ideal height: 46 cms [18 ins] )

Bitches from 41-46 cms [16-18 ins] (Ideal height: 43 cm [17 ins] )

Weight: Dogs about 13-16 kgs [about 29-35 lbs]

Bitches about 11-14 kgs [about 24.5-30 lbs]

Faults: Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog, and on the dog�s ability to perform its traditional work.

Axes of the skull and the muzzle converging

Partially depigmented nose [butterfly nose]

Dishfaced

Pronounced undershot mouth.

Strabismus [squinting or cross-eyed]

Docked tail

Dewclaws

Coat not curled or clipped short

Black coat or black patches.

Oversize or undersize

DISQUALIFICATIONS ,

Totally depigmented nose

Overshot mouth

Wall-eye

Corded coat

Notes: Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

See Photos of the Lagotto Romagnolo

QUESTIONS

1. What is my relationship with the breed? (ie breeder, first time owner etc)

2. Where and why was the breed first developed?

3. How common is it in Australia?

4. What is the average lifespan?

5. What is the general temperament/personality?

6. How much daily exercise is needed for the average adult?

7. Is it a breed that a first time dog owner could easily cope with?

8. Can solo dogs of this breed easily occupy themselves for long periods?

9. How much grooming is required?

10. Is it too boisterous for very small children or for infirm people (unless the dog is well trained)?

11. Are there any common hereditary problems a puppy buyer should be aware of?

12. When buying a puppy, what are the things you should ask of the breeder? (eg what health tests have been done (if applicable) and what is an acceptable result to those tests so the buyer has an idea of what the result should be)

If you wish to contribute to the knowledge about this breed, please answer the above questions. (Copy and paste them into a new post).

• Please only answer if you breed or own a pedigree example of this breed.
  
• You do not have to answer all questions
  
• Please keep posts limited to answering questions or for asking further questions if you require more (or expanded) information.
  

See Photos of the Lagotto Romagnolo

Lagotto Romagnolo Breeders

Lagotto Romagnolo Puppies For Sale

[mushka]

Can any of the breeders/owners chime in on this breed? I'd love to know more.

[bluecollie]

We have a rustic brown one of these come into work to stay...

[Noelle]

I now have two Lagotti as pets, one brown roan, the other off-white. They are lively, fun-loving, smart, medium sized dogs. The coats are not hard to manage, with the occasional scissoring, combing through often, so their non-shedding curls do not become matted. The reason I do not have them clipped is, one developed bald patches, thankfully now regrown coat. Other Lagotto owners might prefer for them to be clipped. The ears need plucking regularly. They are gentle natured, very affectionate and wonderful companions to live with We walk every day, with an assortment of other different sized dogs from a Rottie to a JR, all get along happily. After many years of having beautiful strong Akitas (now passed), I find gorgeous Lagotti much easier.

[sandgrubber]

I rented house and kennels to a Lagotto breeder who is no longer in operation . . . . please don't ask for references. From living next door, I sense that Lagottos can be great little dogs, but DO require a lot of grooming, especially if they are in a natural environment with burrs, grass seeds, etc. (ears need cleaning to avoid infection even if they aren't allowed out in nature). Also, pups that aren't properly socialised at a young age may not make good pets.

[Sagittarian]

Had a gorgeous Lagatto bitch in yesterday for grooming. Fantastic temperament and very affectionate even after only knowing us a short while. Coming from a giant breed background, it was interesting for me to see how compact and sturdy this breed is although not being large. As grooming is not an issue for me (helps when you have a salon lol), this is a breed I would consider having in the future.

Sags

[Tintin Jac]

We have a 14 month old brown roan lagotto. He is a very intelligent dog who learns very quickly and seems to love making us laugh. He is pretty active but is also happy snoozing a lot. He loves being close to people and always wants to be the centre of attention. He still does zoomies around the backyard every night which is very funny to watch.

He is not very high maintenance in the grooming department, although, he is a pet and not a show dog. We just have him clipped every few months and brush a little in between.

We are looking forward to adding to our lagotto family in the next year or so

[louise1]

I think it's time I introduced Charlie to this thread. Charlie is one year old and a Lagotto,he has had a rough start to domestic life but is now finding that humans aren't to bad and we are working on the last of his bad behaviour.

After all that we have been through together I can't stress enough just how important it is to find and meet the breeder and their dogs and to see how they are housed and cared for as these dogs need to be handled and socialized from day one in my opinion or as with any dog you can have a lots of problems.

Charlie is very clever and loves to learn but needs to be trained with a confident,no nonsense approach and lots of praise and he's yours, he needs lots of things to do as he's thinkng all the time and lets face it there's nothing better than digging the worlds biggest hole if you haven't had enough games,walks and swims .Charlie loves nothing better than to swim,at the beach he will swim out 200meters and swim for up to half an hour without coming in,they are such strong little dogs with buckets of engery so we are getting very fit ,he also loves to travel in the car and often comes along just for the ride.

happy to chat about this very beautiful breed M

Edited June 26, 2010 by m&mrc

[Incavale]

M

Good to read about Charlie on this thread & to know he is going so well.

You're right about the need for socialisation, they really do need ongoing contact from day 1 otherwise a whole range of problems will follow.

We'll have a litter on or about 7th July. The last litter of 9 had 8 boys & 1 girl & we're hoping that this time the numbers will be reversed.

J

[Blitza]

M

Good to read about Charlie on this thread & to know he is going so well.

You're right about the need for socialisation, they really do need ongoing contact from day 1 otherwise a whole range of problems will follow.

We'll have a litter on or about 7th July. The last litter of 9 had 8 boys & 1 girl & we're hoping that this time the numbers will be reversed.

J

good luck on the litter, LOL another pup for me to handle and for me to teach you to handle them for shows ;)

[Incavale]

M

Good to read about Charlie on this thread & to know he is going so well.

You're right about the need for socialisation, they really do need ongoing contact from day 1 otherwise a whole range of problems will follow.

We'll have a litter on or about 7th July. The last litter of 9 had 8 boys & 1 girl & we're hoping that this time the numbers will be reversed.

J

good luck on the litter, LOL another pup for me to handle and for me to teach you to handle them for shows

I thought you had enough to keep you happy

[Blitza]

M

Good to read about Charlie on this thread & to know he is going so well.

You're right about the need for socialisation, they really do need ongoing contact from day 1 otherwise a whole range of problems will follow.

We'll have a litter on or about 7th July. The last litter of 9 had 8 boys & 1 girl & we're hoping that this time the numbers will be reversed.

J

good luck on the litter, LOL another pup for me to handle and for me to teach you to handle them for shows :D

I thought you had enough to keep you happy

haha be ok once get you trained up LOL, lol seeing how you were handling one on sunday i definately have my boots cut out for me lmao so to speak

haha im giggling here!

[Incavale]

Can any of the breeders/owners chime in on this breed? I'd love to know more.

What would you like to know?

J

[kiesha09]

I would love to know approximately how big a bitch and dog are? Can you give an example of another breed it compares to in size?

What are they like with children?

How active are they? What are the daily exercise requirements?

How do they cope as an only dog?

How do they cope being alone if owners work?

Do they like to retrieve?

* SOrry for all the questions but I have just come accross this breed and whilst I'm not in the market for a new dog now... I will be one day

Edited July 1, 2010 by kiesha09

[Incavale]

I would love to know approximately how big a bitch and dog are? Can you give an example of another breed it compares to in size?

What are they like with children?

How active are they? What are the daily exercise requirements?

How do they cope as an only dog?

How do they cope being alone if owners work?

Do they like to retrieve?

* SOrry for all the questions but I have just come accross this breed and whilst I'm not in the market for a new dog now... I will be one day

If you read the Breed Standard posted by Troy at the top of this thread, you will get some of the answers you are after.

They are very good with children but young kids need to be educated about dogs and how to behave with & around them.

Most dogs like exercise & this breed can be pretty active.

Most dogs like the company of other dogs especially of the same breed & Lagottos are no exception.

They cope better if they have another dog to play with.

Lagottos can be trained to do a lot of things including retrieving & tracking. They can do well in agility trials and the obedience rings.

[Incavale]

As of yesterday we now have 5 brand new L R puppies

[Noelle]

Congratulations Incavale How many of each? Gorgeous little bundles. Photos please, when they are a wee bit older.

[louise1]

That's really good news,can't wait to see the photo's

[Incavale]

3 girls & 2 boys all shades of cream, 1 boy with a chocolate face. Will post pics next week

[Blitza]

3 girls & 2 boys all shades of cream, 1 boy with a chocolate face. Will post pics next week

cute, hope the boy turns out to be show quality will break the girls up abit LOL